The party conference season saw net zero as a contentious talking point in increasingly divergent policy debates. Here, Miles Thomas, CCO at AMPYR Distributed Energy (ADE), examines how the private sector is actively demonstrating that net zero goals can be both affordable and deliverable.

Change can often be perceived as potentially risky and costly, but successive Governments have overlooked the role that the private sector can play in mitigating risks, reducing costs and helping policy makers to realise green energy ambitions.

The Government has recently announced a series of energy policy updates, among them a commitment to put solar on schools, hospitals, council buildings and its military estate, with a view to reinvesting the savings back into Government initiatives to ease budget constraints. It has identified that investment in renewables in schools and hospitals will deliver more than double the cost of investment in savings on energy costs as well as the potential to sell energy back into the market.

The Government has committed to a total expanded scheme worth up to £255 million, supporting around 250 schools, over 270 NHS sites and around 15 military sites across the country. But its ambition only covers a fraction of the schools, hospitals and public sector buildings in the UK. Furthermore, cost savings for the public sector do not need taxpayer backed interventions. In fact, we wrote to the Government and GB Energy back in March to reinforce the role that private sector investment can play in helping to achieve net zero goals on public sector buildings without burdening the taxpayer.

Clearly there is advocacy at Government level for progress on renewable energy, but the perception that it is going to be a burden on the taxpayer must be unpicked in detail, as it could seriously undermine progress towards Britain becoming a clean energy superpower.

A real missed opportunity for the Government is working collaboratively with the private sector to harness its potential to de-risk and fast-track renewables adoption at a pace that makes its net zero ambitions not only achievable, but market leading. This is especially important as the UK continues to look to increase its competitiveness on the world stage.

When it comes to onsite energy, for example, the funding model is simple, risk free and can drive rapid deployment of solar in the public sector, for businesses and for community energy projects. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) enable rapid, high-quality installation of solar with lifetime maintenance, plus the option of battery energy storage built into the contract, all with no upfront costs. Confidence in PPA funding as a proven model for financing renewables is attracting significant private investment to the UK. What organisations gets in return is significantly reduced energy costs, increased energy security and access to renewable energy to support decarbonisation goals and the peace of mind of knowing that the asset will perform optimally throughout its lifetime.

Public sector funding of renewables projects can provide an appealing headline message, but policy makers do not always consider the long-term requirements to optimise performance of the assets. Working with developers, we have seen many rooftop solar projects that were delivered with support from feed-in-tariff incentives or taxpayer funding now lying dormant due to poor maintenance or a lack of cleaning. The PPA model addresses this directly, with incentives for funders to optimise generation and maximise savings for the life of the renewable assets.

In its Solar Roadmap , the Government is robust in its ambitions: “Solar is at the heart of our mission to make the United Kingdom a clean energy superpower. It is one of the cheapest and quickest to build power sources we have. And every solar panel we install helps us take back control of our energy supply…”. Creating a strong market for onsite PPAs is a vital part of the solution. The long-term nature of PPAs ensures their resilience as a risk-free, low-cost option for a much broader range of commercial entities than envisaged by the roadmap and yes, it is accessible to organisations that are currently perceived by the Government as being challenging to include in its decarbonisation ambitions.

The perception that PPAs are a complex ask, depending on whether the premises are leasehold, freehold, rented, multiple or short-term occupancy can also be overcome. As the market for PPAs matures, the processes and contracts that underpin it have also evolved to become simpler and more transparent, giving confidence to the market and making adoption an attractive and seamless process. Long-term maintenance and asset optimisation is also built in from the outset, offering even greater peace of mind.

Both the technology and PPA funding model is proven and highly effective. We are already partnering with organisations as diverse as football stadia, leisure facilities, manufacturers, shopping centres and schools to help them fast track solar adoption. With energy costs among the highest in the world, private investment in onsite renewables will be critical to maintain UK competitiveness. Commercial enterprises and public sector sites alike can benefit from the long-term peace of mind of significantly reduced energy bills, with no cost for the taxpayer.

Unlocking private investment at scale is the fastest route to a resilient, affordable and globally competitive clean energy future. What is needed now, is a stronger partnership between the government, investors and the private sector to deliver lower energy costs at pace.